comment moderation
Wednesday, January 24, 2007 ~ 6 comments so far
I’m having some issues with comments being moderated. I’ve got WordPress set to allow immediate publishing of comments for people who fill in their name and email, and who have had a comment previously approved. The latter option doesn’t seem to be working though, hence the delay in some of your comments appearing on the screen. I’ll get it fixed ASAP.
Change versus Routine
Wednesday, January 24, 2007 ~ 5 comments so far
As I’ve mentioned before, I enjoy change. I think most people do, as the dull and predictable, staid and static life soons becomes a ditch-water dull drag.
On the other hand, there is something to be said for routine. The familiar lends itself to easy comfort.
At the moment I’m trying to balance the two, change and routine, routine and change. My work routine of the past few years has changed and, as that has the largest bearing on my time, the rest of my daily/weekly routine is changing too. But that’s fine, it was expected. Anticipated change is a good thing.
The main stuff is first, when to leave the house in the morning, when best to leave the office at night, that kind of thing. Of course it has to be fitted into the ‘home’ routine; Monday and Tuesday nights Louise is out early, I’m out on Wednesday evenings. After that come the secondary activities, running and design work for me, then the daily tasks and finally the downtime for watching TV, reading books and so on.
Naturally that routine is up for change, but by and large it can be consider constant, within acceptable boundaries…
Of course what this doesn’t really factor in is those curveballs life enjoys pitching at you. That unexpected expenditure, the unplanned DIY (think broken fence post), and other less pleasant life events.
And that’s when stress becomes a factor. The unexpected change to routine hits hard and you start to fight back, desperate to keep your routine, to keep things normal, to stay in control as much as is possible.
But if you take a different viewpoint then, well, it’s just more change to deal with so I guess I need to clarify my position. I enjoy EXPECTED change.
Now, if you’ve read this far you are probably hoping I have some sort of point. Naturally I don’t. I’ll leave that up to you lot.
Which do you prefer? Change or routine? And are the two mutually exclusive?
intellipoint instant viewer
Wednesday, January 24, 2007 ~ 6 comments so far
New version of Intellipoint mouse software from Microsoft comes with Instant Viewer, a ‘sort of’ Alt+Tab replacement. I’ve switched it to my unused right side button of my Intellimouse Optical and it’s proving very handy (by default it’s added to the scroll wheel). Download it here.
made up words
Wednesday, January 24, 2007 ~ 5 comments so far
touch screen tech
Tuesday, January 23, 2007 ~ 1 comment so far
The new iPhone uses touch screen but this video takes things to another level. Awesome stuff (via)
wrongroom
Tuesday, January 23, 2007 ~ 5 comments so far
Mark on the recent trend for full screen text editors
“These programs aren’t for serious writers at all. They’re for the writer’s equivalent of script kiddies — people who want to go to Starbucks and pick up chicks with their MacBooks and their iPods and their glowing full-screen text editors.”
Having tried a few of these, I have to agree with him. What IS the point?
United 93
Tuesday, January 23, 2007 ~ 5 comments so far
Movie info from IMDB
Movie reviews from Metacritic
Having cancelled our UGC/Cineworld monthly passes towards the end of last year, we’ve kind of fallen away from watching movies at all. However we are now getting to the point that the movies coming on TV (via Sky Movies) are ones that we missed at the cinema, starting with this one.
It’s the story of the final flight that was hijacked on September 11, 2001, the flight that didn’t hit the intended target. The passengers decided to fight back, and the plane crashed in a field. No-one survived.
Putting aside certain issues – at what point do movies like this cross the boundary from ‘faction’ into documentary – it’s a hugely engrossing and moving film. Shot in a very documentary like fashion, we see all sides of the story in real-time. The incredulity that quickly turns to a stunned fear on the part of the ‘officials’ involved at the FAA, and in the military, the spreading fear and anger that permeates the aircraft itself, and the determination and nervousness of the terrorists themselves.
Of course the movie is entirely made up of guesswork, most of which comes from the transcripts of calls made by people on the flight to their loved ones back home. However, by keeping the flight and it’s passengers central to the movie, you are never given any let up in the tension, and this leads to a hugely affecting movie. Despite knowing how it ends, I did begin to feel myself drawn in, to begin to hope that the passengers would be able to wrest control of the plane itself. The final moments are shattering.
This movie caused a lot of commotion when it was released, but I suggest it’s a movie that should have been made when it was, and one that should be watched.